Actress Kate Walsh jetted to Washington, D.C. on Tuesday (23Apr13) to urge government officials to pass a new bill which would expand offshore wind development in the United States.

The Private Practice star teamed up with conservationists at Oceana to lobby members of Congress in Capitol Hill about the need to protect the environment and abandon offshore drilling practices by focusing on clean energy sources.

She said, "It's been two years since my last visit to Washington and I'm troubled to think that offshore drilling is still as dirty and dangerous as it was then. The U.S. needs to transition away from fossil fuels and offshore wind can help. We can no longer afford to ignore that this abundant and job-creating energy source is sitting off our shores. It's time to put offshore wind to work in the U.S."

Walsh, who has also appeared on a number of Tv news channels this week (begs22Apr13) to promote the new piece of legislation, is urging fans to get behind the cause by signing a petition to American President Barack Obama, who is currently considering testing water off the Eastern Seaboard for oil and gas deposits.